---
title: "What Are Content Credentials on AI Images?"
url: https://www.imagequarry.com/faq/what-is-c2pa-content-credentials/
last_updated: 2026-10-20
---

# What are Content Credentials on AI images?

Content Credentials are provenance information attached to an image under the C2PA open standard, recording where it came from and how it was edited. Platforms such as Meta read these signals to label AI-generated images.

C2PA describes its standard as "an open technical standard for publishers, creators and consumers" that helps "establish the origin and edits of digital content." It compares Content Credentials to a nutrition label for digital content.

Meta says it labels images posted to Facebook, Instagram and Threads when it detects industry-standard indicators, including AI-generated information in the C2PA and IPTC standards.

Regulation is moving the same way. The EU AI Act requires providers of generative AI to mark outputs in a machine-readable format so they are detectable as artificially generated.

Provenance data can be lost when an image is screenshotted or re-saved by some apps, so its absence does not prove an image is real.

This is general information, not legal advice, and the rules differ by country.

_Source: C2PA, Meta's labeling announcement (February 2024, updated April 2025) and EU AI Act Article 50, checked October 20, 2026._

Next step: [Do I need to disclose that an image is AI-generated?](https://www.imagequarry.com/faq/do-i-need-to-disclose-ai-images/)

## Related questions

- [Do I need to disclose that an image is AI-generated?](https://www.imagequarry.com/faq/do-i-need-to-disclose-ai-images/): Sometimes: platform rules and laws like the EU AI Act require it.
- [Are AI image generators private?](https://www.imagequarry.com/faq/are-ai-image-generators-private/): Not always: some show images publicly or allow human review.
- [Can AI images be used in ads?](https://www.imagequarry.com/faq/can-ai-images-be-used-in-ads/): Yes, within ad platform policies and advertising law.
- [What should I check in an AI image tool's privacy policy?](https://www.imagequarry.com/faq/what-should-i-check-in-an-ai-privacy-policy/): Training use, retention, human review, sharing and deletion.

Last reviewed 2026-10-20 by ImageQuarry.

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